Eunice WilkinsonPrinceton resident Lois Young greets children in Myanmar whom she and her foundation, Cetana, have pledged to educate.

PRINCETON TOWNSHIP — Years ago, Lois Young and her family approached people in Myanmar about what the country most needed in the way of help from abroad.

“Their huge response was, ‘We need something for our young people and we need education,’” said Young. “There was nothing going on.”

So in 1993, Young, a Princeton Township resident, and her family established the Cetana Foundation, which provided scholarships for the Myanmar people and sent 70 students to college abroad. It has also opened three centers to teach English in Myanmar. Young said that although several languages are spoken in Myanmar, most business takes place in English.

“Cetana” is the Myanmarese concept of goodwill and benevolence in the service of others without thought of recompense.

Myanmar — formerly Burma — has a special place in Young’s heart. Young’s father, a professor, was a missionary in Myanmar, and Young grew up in the country.

At 76, Young continues to crusade vigorously for the welfare of the Myanmar people.

A group of a dozen people, including several Princeton residents, traveled to Myanmar at the end of last year in a trip organized by Lois Young and Cetana to view some of the good work the foundation has done in the country. It was the 12th such trip Young has led.

Sylvia Stengle was among the Princeton residents on the trip. Stengle has traveled to several Asian countries, including Myanmar neighbors China and India, but she said she relished the “rare opportunity” to visit a lesser known country such as Myanmar.
Although it is a large country, she said, Myanmar is often overshadowed by its much more prominent neighbors.

Stengle said that one of the best elements of the trip was traveling with Young, who is well-connected among the locals. For instance, their guide was someone Young had known for years and took them off the beaten track.

“We really had a very deep experience of the human beings that were there, trying to make (Myanmar) a better place,” Stengle said.

Since the 1960s, Myanmar has been under repressive military rule.

However, restrictions have lessened in recent years, including the release from house arrest of popular opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, she said.

Under the restrictions in place at that time, no universities were open full time, but things are changing slowly.

“They are just hungry for education and eager, eager, eager for learning,” said Young.
Stengle said it was clear to her the people were coming off a period of restriction and ready to embrace democracy. She said a local told her that things have gone “demo-crazy” in Myanmar.

Young said she, too, has seen restrictions lessening over time. She also said that this new openness has brought many new visitors.

Eunice Wilkinson was another Princeton resident who went on the trip. Wilkinson was struck by the industriousness of the Myanmar people and their ability to make do with so little.

A master gardener, she was particularly impressed by the “ingenious” method they had devised that allowed them to grow tomatoes on a lake and then harvest them via longboat.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Wilkinson. “It was amazing.”

Stengle and Wilkinson will be among those present today at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton for a screening of the 1956 Japanese film “The Burmese Harp,” which shows the plight of Myanmar during World War II.

The event, which starts at 2 p.m., will be hosted by the Coalition for Peace Action.
“The film is such a beautiful statement about the universal benefits of peace and the damage of war,” said Stengle.

Young, who describes the Cetana Foundation as “small and mighty,” is planning another trip to Myanmar in 2013 and encourages anyone who is interested to check out the foundation’s website, www.cetana.org.